Finding the Answers
by mswriter07
Summary: This story is now COMPLETE! I hope you enjoyed as I've enjoyed writing it. Summary: Penning needed to know why. His best agent had gone rogue and no one could tell him why. He was out of options maybe the head of the BAU could offer some insights as he was out of options.
1. Chapter 1

Two files landed on Aaron Hotchner's desk and Aaron looked up at the person who dropped them. Agent Penning said, "You have a minute?"

Hotch looked around his office and said, "Yeah. Sure."

Penning sat in the chair across from the other agent and said, "Sorry about barging in here. I'm Agent Mark Penning from the LA offices. I need your help with those two files."

"Nice to meet you Agent Penning." Aaron flipped open the first file - Federal Agent Brian O' Conner. He skimmed the first page and looked at Penning, "You have a rogue agent running with an ex-con skipping through countries south of the border?"

"Something like that. He was injured a few months ago catching Arturo Braga as a UC. The ex-con still had a warrant for his arrest from truck jackings he performed five years ago and he didn't run after our agent was injured. Then after his sentencing hearing Agent O' Conner broke him off the transport bus and they've been on the run for about two weeks."

"And your agents can't catch them?" Aaron asked with a raised eyebrow.

"We're still trying to find where they've been and where they're going but I'm here because I want to figure out why O' Conner and Toretto are doing what they're doing. Toretto is the only person he's let go and done everything possible to keep out of jail."

"Okay I'll call a few of my team members and we'll look over their files and figure out why things are different with this subject."

"Thank you. Here's my card. Call my office or cell phone if you need anything or have a theory." Penning stood up and handed his fellow agent his business card.

Hotch shook his hand and said, "My team doesn't do theories so when you hear from me it'll be a definite answer."

"Good to know." Penning said with a small grin. Hotch returned the smile and Penning left the office.


	2. Chapter 2

Aaron skimmed through Brian's file some more and decided that he and his team would start with the _how_ question. How did Brian O' Conner end up working the Toretto case? Aaron grabbed the files off his desk and went out into the bullpen and saw Rossi and Reid sitting around a meeting table; the rest of the team was out in the field gathering evidence for their current case.

Reid looked up and saw more files in Hotch's hand and asked, "Is that from the other agent that just left?"

Rossi looked at Aaron and said, "What do you got for us?"

"Agent Penning wants us to try and get into these peoples heads and figure out why his fellow agent is now on the other side of law. I figured we could start with the how question. Not a lot of information in his file on his past so we'll have Garcia find the information to get a better picture."

"Start from the beginning Hotch." Rossi said as he motioned to a chair between he and Reid.

Hotch sat between the two men and opened Brian's folder - he kept Dom's closed for a reason. "This is Agent Brian O' Conner…" Hotch relayed everything that Penning told him and saw the looks on their faces as they studied the picture.

"And this guy was their top UC agent? He'd be recognizable ten miles off." Reid replied.

"Well when they aren't expecting him he could blend with any crowd and fit into a lot of age groups depending on the op he's in for." Rossi said.

Hotch added, "He's an excellent officer and agent until it comes to this man, Dominic Toretto. We have to figure out why he never arrested him in the first place and why he orchestrated a jail break off of a transport bus to their destination - Lompoc."

Reid made a strangled sound and asked, "That's the person we're trying to figure out? He's a legend, especially after this daredevil stunt. I should've recognized the names immediately."

Hotch and Rossi looked at Reid expectantly. "What do you know Reid?" Hotch asked.

"They were all over the news when the breakout happened. Remember I was too sick to come in that day and we were busy with the hitchhiker case with the three women. I totally forgot about this until now. Brian has always had a knack for UC, partly because of how he grew in a broken home, mostly living on the streets in his teen years. Then he gets sent to Juvie when he's fifteen for boosting cars and scrapes out of high school but has seen enough of the prison system that he joins the police academy and blows through all of their entrance exams so they have to take him on as a cadet. He finds the organization as a whole to be like his adopted family so he blends in, catches the eye of a sergeant Tanner, and he becomes this guy's protege…"

Hotch interrupted by clearing his throat and watched Reid stumble to a halt in his monologue. "Why didn't you tell us any of this before now?"

"It wasn't really necessary or pertaining to any of our cases."

Rossi looked at Reid curiously and asked, "When did another fed become your obsession and from the west coast at that?"

Reid swallowed and said, "I'm not obsessed with him. I looked up information after I saw all the news footage. He's not in any social media, that's to be expected as he's an undercover agent, but he doesn't have anything else online either. All this information that was available I hacked into the LAPD and looked at his FBI profile that's public to someone with a high enough clearance like us."

Rossi looked up at Hotch then and raised a brow. "We'll have to talk to Garcia about teaching him how to hack into things."

"Let's get back on track. Plenty of time for squealing and rambling later." Hotch said and he looked at Reid pointedly. Reid sat perfectly still and nodded.

Rossi, bless his heart, was thankful they were focused on each other as he rolled his eyes at their antics in a nice professional manner at that. He got his mind back on track and said, "I'll call Garcia and tell her what's going on. You two start a profile of your own on this ex-agent."

Thirty minutes later, Rossi came back to the table with a few printouts in his hand and Hotch asked, "What do you have?"

"A journal entry that his Sergeant decided to keep on file, partly because it intrigued him and he could go back and reread it to see if he could crack O' Conner."  
"How did he get ahold of something as private as a journal entry from Brian?" Hotch inquired.

"He said Brian gave it to him and he put it in his file." Rossi said as he sat back down at the table and looked over Hotch's and Reid's notes. Neither had much passed what they were discussing before he left the room but that was forgivable. He hoped the journal entry would be useful to them.

Reid held his hand out and Rossi handed over the warn piece of paper and the doctor skimmed the entry for relevant information. "He had a buddy in Juvie, Roman Pearce. He seemed to always be looking after Rome because of his temper. No one really liked him talking either, Rome that is, Brian knew what he was doing."

"Does he mention where this Roman Pearce ended up?" Hotch asked as he tried to look at the paper in Reid's hands.

"No. They haven't talked since Brian left Juvie and entered the Academy." Reid stated.

"Maybe Brian feels guilt over not being able to save his friend so when he meets Dominic Toretto he makes certain choices and keeps his friend out of cuffs." Hotch said.

Rossi agreed. "Guilt is a good answer and that one seems the strongest contender so far so we'll write it down and change it if something else comes to light as we examine his friends."

"That sounds good." Reid said as he went back to reading Brian's file for the twentieth time.


	3. Chapter 3

Rossi picked up ex-con Dominic Toretto's file and flipped through it. "The question now to answer is what. What did Dominic Toretto do to Brian O' Conner that O' Conner would throw away his law enforcement career for Toretto?"

"With everything that happened between them five years ago and then their meeting at some races for a Cartel leader named Arturo Braga, which they recently caught and put into prison, former Agent O' Conner seems to gravitate towards Mr. Toretto. Here in the files for both men has his sister, one Mia Toretto telling the police how during O' Conner's undercover operation to catch her brother with local interstate truck jacking that her brother owned O' Conner."

"And what is your question Reid?" Rossi said.

"No question. Just stating facts." Spencer said as he pulled Dom's file closer.

"What do you think she meant by owning him?" Hotch asked.

Rossi rummaged through a few papers and said, "These two seem like they're magnets to each other. They'd been living completely different lives and would've been fine if they hadn't met but they did. As a result, they rounded out their connections and now - any time apart seems to hurt them more than help them. They both have their moral compasses about right, wrong, lawful, unlawful, et cetera but everything they've done has been to protect the other and make sure they didn't get caught."

"But O' Conner did get caught - twice." Reid said.

"Extenuating circumstances. The FBI and Customs needed his expertise." Hotch said.

"Which…?" Reid deliberately left off the other half of his question.

"He's a master at going undercover. He can fit into almost any given persona you give him." Hotch said.

"And what will happen if we can figure him and his friend out?"

"Most likely they end up going to federal prisons for leaving the country and everything else that they've done." Rossi said as he looked over at Reid.

Hotch looked at his lover and asked, "You're not sympathising with these two criminals are you?"

"No. Never. But they've not really hurt anything or anyone except the government's ego."

"Sometimes that's all it takes." Hotch said and he sounded a little sad they would have to arrest the two but he had to uphold the law.

"So just because they show a strong sense of loyalty to each other, we have to rip them apart and send them to jail? I don't see any point in that when otherwise these two are law-abiding citizens." Reid asked.

"Let's get Garcia on the phone and looking for other connections between the two if there are any." Hotch said.

Reid nodded and got up to use the desk phone near the table that was in use for the case. Rossi just looked between his two teammates and saw they were both fighting against being sympathetic with their subjects. He gathered as much about the subjects as his own teammates in the last hour and he hoped they made the right decision. He decided to wait till they had the full profiles on the subjects before he proposed what they were going to do. He'd seen the dimension that they were missing ... and he was an old romantic at heart.


	4. Chapter 4

The three men were hunched over their files, making notes and reviewing the information they had when the desk phone Spencer used to call Garcia rang shrilly in the silence. Reid hit the speaker and said, "Hit us Garcia."

A small chuckle answered Reid's response and he glanced at his teammates. "Who is this?" Hotch asked in his FBI voice.

The voice on the end of the line laughed again and said, "You must be the insurmountable leader SSA Aaron Hotchner? Nice to finally meet you. Too bad I was in the LA offices during my stint."

Aaron looked between his co-workers and found Rossi eyeing the phone with curiosity and Reid barely containing his whole being. Aaron wanted to speak to Spencer, but instead he reached for his hand and put his finger to his mouth. "Yes this Agent Aaron Hotchner. Can I get confirmation that we're speaking to Brian O' Conner?"

"The one and only. I'm going to guess my old boss brought our files today."

"That would be correct." Reid answered evenly as he tightened his hold on Hotch's hand.

"Just so you know, none of what's happened was recent. This has been years in the making and we finally had our chance." Brian knew it was a confession of sorts but he figured it was more on the fact it was love than any crime.

"We've gathered that. Now when will we be able to have a face to face?" Rossi asked as he knew that Hotch nor Reid would ask the question.

"Probably never unless we're pardoned to come home." Brian said with steel lacing his words.

"We'll see about that. Now why did you contact us?" Hotch said.

"To check in with you guys. I hear your team is pretty good." Brian laughed.

"My team is the best. We'll find you and justice will be done."

"I don't see that happening. Now you guys have fun with your profile. I've got a race to win." Brian said.

"When we find you, you'll be singing a different tune, maybe that of a federal prison." Hotch threatened.

"Good luck." Then the connection went dead.

Reid shut the phone off and looked between Hotch and Rossi. "Should we be worried that he knows who we are and what we're doing right this minute?"

"Very." Rossi replied.


	5. Chapter 5

None of the three men were expecting a call to report to the airstrip for an international flight so they grabbed their go bags and all their files they had been working on and headed for their FBI plane. The other team members were working on another case so they were excluded from the trip. Once on the plane they figured out they were going to Rio de Janeiro and Rossi had to think why they were going to Brazil on short notice.

Rossi took a seat by the window and Hotch and Reid sat across from him. As files were reopened, Hotch and Reid kept brushing their fingers against the other and they had their knees pressed together under the table. Rossi ran his hand over his face and said, "I know you two are together. Hold hands, find comfort, whatever but stop with this mamby pamby under the radar kind of crap. We have a profile we're trying to figure out and they seem to be ahead of us in all aspects."

Hotch coughed and tried to cover it up by clearing his throat. Spencer's hand rubbed Aaron's back and he said, "We have to focus and figure out why we're going to Brazil and what's going to happen in the long run."

"I know." Aaron sighed. Afterwards the three made some more notes and decided to sleep on the plane since they didn't know what to expect once they landed or who they were meeting.

In Rio, Dominic Toretto looked at Brian and asked, "Are you sure it's safe to bring those Agents here?"

"Yeah. They need to know what we're doing here and that it's almost done."

"Are we going to run again after this if they don't arrest us in the end?"

"I don't know but we'll be alright. We've controlled the game from the beginning."

"I'm not feeling so confident since we'll be breathing the same air as them shortly."

Brian wrapped his arms around Dom and kissed him gently. "Trust me baby. We'll be alright. I love you."

Dom kissed Brian's mouth and said, "I love you too."

The plane landed on a private airstrip and the three agents deplaned and found a couple of vehicles waiting by the hanger. Against one car was one ex-FBI agent Brian O' Conner and then against the other car was one wanted man Dominic Toretto. Dom stayed leaning against his borrowed vehicle and Brian approached the agents.

The three profilers looked over the two men and Brian stopped in front of Spencer Reid and said, "You want to know why you're here then I'm going to take you for a drive," he pointed to Reid and continued, "And you two go with my buddy Dom."

Reid glanced at his lover and nodded his head as he gripped his messenger bag as looked back at Brian. He said, "Don't let my stature fool you. I can defend myself when need be."

"You could've fooled me but I'm not here to fight the resident geek. Let's go."

Brian walked towards his restored Skyline and motioned for Reid to get in on what would be the driver's side. Reid slid into the car and looked around at all the computers and technology set up in the car. Brian looked over Spencer's profile and seen him taking in his car, interrupting Spencer's thoughts Brian said, "Buckle up."

Spencer put the special seat belt on and Brian slipped his car around Dom's SUV and took off down a few alleys. Spencer watched the passing scenery noting the street signs and some key landmarks and asked, "Where are we going?"

"I'm showing you why you're here. The biggest thing I'm guilty of is breaking out an innocent man off a transport bus and crossing borders." Brian glanced at Spencer to see his reaction and then continued, "What this guy is doing is so much worse. He's got this big drug operation set up and is sending it up through Mexico and Miami. We have a team here but having your help would make sure the guy's put away forever."

"So you're on the run but you're still trying to catch the bad guys? This is Interpol territory so for everything to be proper and stick in a court of law we have to call them in. They have the authority."

"Technically this is FBI territory as he's shipping it into the US so it's US jurisdiction."

"If I look at this by your logic, then we need to figure out your end game so we can figure out the best route to take with the current situation."

"Now you're getting it and the payout will be phenomenal."

"But very against the law." Spencer sputtered.

"Call it your working fee. The FBI really does need to learn to pay their agents better." Brian said as he swung onto the street he needed.

Back at the SUV, both Dom and Rossi noticed how Hotch watched as Reid left with Brian and then got in the backseat of the SUV. Something Rossi knew he never did. He knew that not having Reid in his sight line was going to make for some interesting times but he had to play his cards right to try and get Hotch to loosen up.

Dom motioned for Rossi to get in the SUV and he started towards the warehouse and the other team members. He glanced at SSA Aaron Hotchner and saw he was flipping through various screens on his phone with a frown on his face. "Aaron he's going to be fine. Brian won't lay a hand on him and he won't let any touch a hair on his head." Dom thought he was being reassuring but he guessed very wrong.

Aaron shot forward and gripped Dom's shirt and said, "Pull this vehicle over right now."  
Dom glanced at Rossi and Rossi said, "You better listen to him."

Dom parked in the closest alley and Hotch motioned for Dom to get out of the car, which he did, and Hotch pushed him against the side of the car. He said, "Do not assume we're friends. I can call my boss and O' Conner's ex boss and have you and your merry group of a team arrested for the warrants out as well as kidnapping. Now you're going to tell me and my partner here what the hell is going on and if you leave one detail out I'll know. Start talking Toretto."

Dom couldn't help but see the color in Hotch's eyes turn from dark brown to black and the fact that he still hadn't let go of the front of his shirt - he did not want to see what his fist felt like so he started talking. "The guy who runs this town is crazy. He's got a drug line into the US through California and Miami. We're trying to stop him."

"This is a DEA and Interpol operation - not FBI." Hotch said.

"Well tell that to Brian. He seems to think you guys can help us out and the payout will be worth the trouble it's caused." Dom said as he pushed Hotch's hands off of his shirt.

"You're looking at stealing drug money?" Hotch said as he eyed Dom with his typical glare like he was facing an unsub.

"It's not drug money. It's Reyes money."

"And where the hell did O' Conner take Spencer?"

"He's showing him where Reyes hideout is and a couple of other places and then he'll be meeting us back at the warehouse we're all staying at."

"Anything happens to him - you won't have to worry about laws or drugs or any of that. I'll be your worst nightmare."

Dom held his hands up in surrender and said, "Let's just get to the warehouse and they should be there soon."

"They better be." Hotch said and Rossi felt it was safe enough to touch Aaron's shoulder to get his attention.

Rossi said, "Let's see how things play out. Reid knows how to take care of himself."

"Okay."

Hotch backed off and got back in the backseat and Dom got in the driver's seat. Rossi just looked at Aaron and wondered how long he'd stay put together before his hands wrapped around Dom's neck. He hoped Reid was faring okay with Brian O' Conner. He had his own questions but he'd wait until all the cards were on the table before he started in Rossi-style. He just hoped that Reid and Hotch would be able to hold up in this mess of an operation.

An hour later, Brian and Spencer walked into the warehouse and Aaron made a beeline to Spencer while Brian went over to where Dom and Rossi stood over a map. Hotch gave Spencer a periphery once over before he cupped his jaw and kissed him gently. He whispered as he pulled away, "Are you okay?"

"I'm good Aaron. Let's help them with their endgame and then we can go home."

"Are you sure? We've already broken so many laws and regulations."

"Think of Jack. We'll be able to retire if we want and go about other pursuits and we can raise Jack and…."

"I have been thinking of Jack but I've also been thinking of you too and I don't think I can live with us being apart."

"Me either." Spencer whispered against Aaron's lips.

The three men watched as Reid and Hotch found their ground and Brian and Dom glanced at each other before they laced their fingers together. Brian cleared his throat and Aaron and Spencer went over to the table. Spencer catalogued the maps they were using before he shooed everyone but Aaron out of his work space. He made a few calculations and then showed the team the new map.

Brian and Dom were impressed with his skills and they got their plan together. They routed half the team to take one side of the map and then the other half for the other side while they planned to get the safe from the police station. They also thought it'd be safest for Reid, Hotch and Rossi to stay at the warehouse with Mia while they made the run. The tasks would be complete by sunup and they'd meet back at the warehouse with the money.

While Hotch still hadn't warmed up to the idea, Spencer assured him everything was going to be fine. The different parts of the team left and Spencer sat next to Mia watching the GPS and where everyone was going. Rossi took Aaron aside and said, "How are you doing Aaron?"

"I never want Spencer out of my sight. Tonight, even though he was safe, got to me too much. I didn't want to have to bury him when we got home if everything hadn't worked out."

"You let Toretto and O' Conner get to you but you had good intentions. Maybe they'll see that they're playing with fire and that Spencer could find a way to blow all of this up in smoke."

That got a small grin from Aaron and he said, "Yeah he would, if he thought we were in any danger."

"Come on. Let's enjoy the rest of this ride and then go home."

Aaron walked over to the screens and stood behind Spencer where he rested his hands on his shoulders and kissed the top of his head.


	6. Chapter 6

Around 7 am, Aaron's phone rang and he answered, "Hotchner."

"Agent Aaron Hotchner," Strauss paused, then continued, "How are you liking Brazil?"

Aaron furrowed his brows and asked, "How do you know where I'm at?"

"I'll explain when you come home later today. Also accept Agent O' Conner's offer of taking a payout. You three deserve it. See you when you get home."

Aaron heard her hang up her phone. He looked over at Spencer and said, "That was Strauss. She said take the payments and that we deserve it."

"Did aliens take over Strauss' body?" Spencer asked, disbelief clear in his voice as he took in the information that she wanted them to take 'their' share of the money from the heist.

"I don't know but she said that we would be filled in when we got home."

"I think we've been fooled by our superior and the others. While our profile was correct they had ulterior motives for involving us." Spencer said as he looked between Aaron and Rossi.

"We had a good vacation in a different country and then we get paid a couple of million each for our time. I say it's a win win situation." Rossi said.

Mia looked at the three agents and said, "You guys did help this operation. The criminal will go down and these neighborhoods can have some peace of mind."

"But you all are criminals too. The FBI has warrants for every member of the team." Spencer said.

"Criminals can include you three as well. The BAU has had to go pretty dark to get some of the criminals you chase. We do the same." Mia said.

"Ms. Toretto, we'll see what happens when we get back to the States."

A few minutes later the doors to the warehouse flew open and Dom and Brian sped inside with the safe attached to the back of their cars and the doors came down. Brian got out of his car smiling and went over to Spencer to drag him over the safe. After Tej popped open the safe door, Brian said, "You guys get fifteen blocks split even between you guys and we get to go home."

"Don't be so sure. I'm calling my Unit Chief." Reid said.

"Would like me to call Erin Strauss?" Brian said as he pulled his phone out.

Spencer looked at Brian suspiciously, "How do you know my boss?"

"She's the one that sent us here. We needed a few of your talents so she let us play. We brought down Reyes and get to keep our payout. Now I'm officially done with the FBI and I'm going to lead a quiet life in LA."

Hotch stalked up to where Brian and Spencer were standing and said, "Strauss knew about all of this?"

"Why do you think my boss made it to your office? She sent for him so that he could ask for your help. Then you started figuring everything out except our location which we gave you when you were requested to fly here. Now we'll be getting pardons and all of my team can lead private and quiet lives back in LA. We haven't seen home in a couple of years. I'm missing LA and its smog."

"And why did you choose us three?" Hotch asked as he stepped closer to Reid.

"Luck of the draw as the others were already out checking a case. Enjoy your retirement fund, spend time with your son and the people you love and try to have a little fun. You're always welcome in LA without your badge if you want to hang out." Brian pressed a button and dialed it on speaker. "Evening Director Strauss. Mission's completed."

"Agent O' Conner, I knew you'd come through. How's my BAU team?"

Aaron stepped closer to Brian's phone and said, "We're fine." He knew Strauss could hear his underlying questions of 'What the hell did you accomplish by most of the Federal government going rogue?' and many more that were rolling through by-the-book-unless-you-count-falling in love-with-his-subordinate-Dr. Spencer Reid, Aaron Hotchner's head.

"Agent Hotchner, Brian O' Conner and his team will be on board a plane from Rio to LA first thing in the morning. They have their payout and you all have yours. The rest of the team will get similar packages as bonuses as to show a unity in pay." Strauss cleared her throat and said, "I'm going to have non-disclosure agreements ready for you three to sign when you return. This mission is sealed as confidential."

"Do you want us on the plane now?" Spencer asked.

"Enjoy your day. Be back by lunch tomorrow and we'll get your money situated and into your accounts."

"Will do." Aaron said.

Brian added, "We'll take good care of the agents while they're here."

"Thank you Agent O' Conner." Strauss said and then she continued, "And you and your team behave from now on. I don't want to hear of anymore issues that need to be fixed."

"I don't plan on it Director Strauss. Your agents will be safe and sound."

"Have a good day O' Conner. Good bye Agent Hotchner and Dr. Reid." Erin hung her phone up and Reid and Hotch looked at Brian.

Brian grinned his sunny California smile and said, "You're in for a treat tonight." He glanced at Reid and said, "You'll have to get rid of your sweater vest though for this crowd."

"What are we doing?" Spencer asked as he watched Brian wearily.

"We are going to go win you and your better half your wedding present." Brian laughed as he watched Spencer move closer to Aaron.

"Wedding?" Aaron asked as he looked between Spencer and Brian.

"You guys are the profilers but I can see when sparks are happening and you two won't be long in that decision. Now that I've done my penance I'm not far either. I didn't want anything to happen with us not in our home."

"So you and Mr. Toretto are together?"

"Yeah. His sister was a good buffer for a few years but we basically said screw what people thought and we haven't lost anyone we consider important so hopefully you two do the same. You're welcome to LA to visit whenever you've got five minutes. We'll show you the good races and beaches."

"And if you come to DC we'll think of something." Reid said for once at a loss as to what DC had to offer someone like Brian O' Conner.

"We'll definitely take you up on that offer." Brian said and then motioned for the others to join them in front of the vault to have the money divided accordingly.

Spencer and Aaron could only look at each other and laugh. There was no way even they would have guessed this could possibly be their lives.


End file.
